Jon Payne selected for undergraduate Faculty Scholars Program

June 14, 2013

Pilot activity encourages six recently tenured faculty members to experiment in research and teaching

Jonathan Payne

Harry Elam, vice provost for undergraduate education (VPUE) at Stanford, announced the new VPUE Faculty Scholars Program, a yearlong pilot program that will give newly tenured faculty the opportunity to explore, experiment and take new creative risks in research and teaching. Jonathan Payne, associate professor of geological and environmental sciences, is one of six selected as Faculty Scholars for 2013-14.

Payne is a paleobiologist who studies the relationship between environmental change and biological evolution in the fossil record. His primary focus is on understanding the causes of mass extinctions and the processes that control subsequent recovery of biodiversity and global ecosystems.

Payne joined the Stanford School of Earth Sciences faculty in 2005. Last year he received the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the Foundation’s most prestigious award in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education and research. It provides funding for a five-year period.

In 2007, Payne received Stanford’s Frederick E. Terman Fellowship, awarded to promising young faculty to provide financial support for their research.

In addition to Payne, the following Stanford professors will participate in the pilot VPUE Faculty Scholars Program for 2013-14: